PENANG – Blackwater showed no signs of slowing down as it dealt Karnataka State-India a 113-70 beatdown to move within a win of clinching the 2016 Penang Chief Minister Cup International Basketball Invitation championship on Monday at the Han Chiang Indoor Stadium here.

The Elite held India to just two field goals during the first 6 minutes of the 2nd period to turn a precarious 2-point lead to a 50-30 advantage.

The 2-year-old PBA ball club made a living with its full-court pressure, forcing Karnataka State to an eye-popping 24 turnovers, which Blackwater converted to 31 points.

Big man JP Erram led 21 points and 7 rebounds, Carlo Lastimosa added 19 points, while Jason Melano came off the bench and chipped in 15.

The Elite are coming off a huge 77-75 win over tournament-favorite Zhejiang Chouzhou Commercial Bank-China on Sunday in a virtual championship match behind rookie Roi Sumang’s game-clinching triple with less than a second left.

“Sabi ko nga sa kanila kanina, wala akong pakialam kung ano ang mangyari sa game between Malaysia and China. I want them to win the game tomorrow so we can complete our goal of sweeping the tournament and prepare well for the next conference sa PBA,” Blackwater coach Leo Isaac said after the game.

Blackwater, which is using the Penang trip as part of its buildup for the PBA’s season-ending Governors Cup, only needs to beat host and 2016 ABL champion Malaysia Dragons on Tuesday to complete the 5-game sweep and rule the tournament.

The 2-year-old franchise finished second behind Malaysia during the tournament’s inaugural edition in 2014. – By Richard Dy